“I feel vulnerable and helpless. That’s why I haven’t spoken until now,” says Bipasha Basu softly.

Bipasha was returning from Film City on 26/11 when she was caught in the blast. “It happened at Vile Parle as I crossed the area. There was mayhem on the road as my staff and I sat huddled in our car wondering what to do next. Should we go forward? Or go back? I told my driver to drive in the middle of the road as fast as possible.”

Three weeks down the line, and as the city nurses its wounds, Bipasha wonders what she can do to help the situation. “I’ve been extremely affected by 26/11. I haven’t spoken to anyone about it until now.

I don’t know how I can ease the pain of Mumbai. Everyone wants to put forward more than just a point of view. But no one seems to know what to do. I do believe in the mass movement that Mumbai has been seeing over the last three weeks. I think people lighting candles, holding hands, showing their solidarity speaking out…it’s all very effective.”

Bipasha was skeptical to begin with. “I thought this movement would die down after the first few days. But now I feel it’s not losing momentum. And I’m very happy about that. The media is playing a very important part in keeping the movement against terrorism alive. I must admit I thought it would be over after one Sunday. That’s why I kept quiet.”

But now Bipasha believes in the power of people. “I just hope it continues. If the people’s voice continues to be heard whichever government comes into power will be forced to pay heed and provide us with basic security.

Sure, our economy is booming and the industries are doing well. But what do we do without security in Mumbai? If the financial capital of India which generates the maximum taxes is hit, how do we sustain global confidence in our country?”

Bipasha can’t believe that ten terrorists could do this to Mumbai. “What happened to Mumbai is a shame for the entire country. I went out socially for the first time this week. Life must go on.

The important thing is to not forget the lessons that we’ve learnt from 26/11. Now I feel far less defeated far more optimistic about the future than I did the first few days after Mumbai was attacked.

Mumbai won’t forget. We have Zero security in the country. Otherwise how could there be continuous blasts all over the city for so many hours? And if the detonated RDX had not been discovered in time, it could have been worse.”

Bipasha caught up with a film on the Mumbai blasts. “I saw Neeraj Pandey’s A Wednesday after 26/11. I can’t believe it’s so sensitive and so prophetic. Like Naseeruddin Shah being pushed into destroying terrorism the Common Man is ready take action. A Wednesday should be a textbook on terrorism. All of us should see it and learn its lessons.”

The Bong babe rarely has a word of praise for her contemporaries, but is apparently all head over heels for King Khan. The sultry actress who performed a cameo with Shah Rukh Khan in ‘Rab Ne Bana Di Jodi’ says that she was much too thrilled to perform with the actor.

Speaking to a news daily about her cameo with the superstar, she said, “It was like Mumtaz-meets-Sadhana. I loved it! I got a chance to work with Shah Rukh Khan, nothing else matters. Like millions, I had seen him on screen. Then I met him for a show and I was very impressed”.

The stunner further added, “I did `Rab Ne…` in the hope of doing a full-length role with Shah Rukh and a film with Aditya Chopra. That one day of shooting with Shah Rukh was memorable. He`s the nicest superstar I`ve ever met and irresistibly charming. This was my chance to dance.”

The last time Bipasha attended the puja it was five years ago.

She has not been able to join her family for the celebration, thanks to her hectic work schedule.

‘Every year it has become the same. For the last five years, I’ve been trying my level-best to make it home to Kolkata. But it never works out. This year I’m busier than ever.

Bipasha describes her relationship with god as conversational.

‘My everyday interaction with god is one-to-one. I don’t know any religious mantras though I love to hear my mom when she chants the shlokas and mantras during any puja in my house.’

“I want to disprove that myth. The preconceived notions have to be overcome,” she said, talking of the typical Kashmiri girl image.

And the dusky babe is taking her role very seriously. She has demanded for a native Kashmiri girl to be brought to her in Mumbai, so that she can study her. Bipasha claims that she would need to observe the true native body language, mannerism and accent. Bipasha is to learn the Kashmiri language for the role, too.

All the preparations are being made in Mumbai as Kashmir is not deemed safe by the actress to do her homework; same goes for the reason behind a Kashmiri girl being brought all the way from the valley to Mumbai.

“I want my character to be very basic - exactly like the girls are in Kashmir today. I’ve done realistic roles in Prakash Jha’s ‘Apaharan’ as well as Madhur Bhandarkar’s ‘Corporate’. But, ‘Lamha’ is something else.” Bipasha averred about her character in the flick that takes a hard-hitting look at the strife-stricken valley.

The role has added up on the interest-quotient by the involvement of Bips. Not to say of the oomph-quotient, that is bound to be there. Kashmir will soon be a hot and happening place to be when the shooting starts in October!

Reminded at a felicitation programme here Monday evening that the star had promised a date with him if he won a medal in the Beijing Olympics, Vijender’s initial response was: “I have no time to go to her.”

However, the handsome Vijender added after a pause: “But if I ever go to her, I will go with flowers, and not with my boxing gloves.”

She co-stars with Ranbir Kapoor and Deepika Padukone, who are just one film old. Minissha Lamba and Karan Kapoor are also in the movie.

“People have been calling me the seniormost actor in the film. I almost feel like Amitabh Bachchan now. The others in the film are extremely good actors and not at all inexperienced,” Bipasha said.

“They have a lot of experience and have absolute clarity in their mind on what they want to do. They are very spontaneous and we even get together very well in that way,” added Bipasha who was seen in this year’s first big hit “Race”.

Bipasha was here with her co-stars and director Siddharth Anand to promote the film that traces the journey of a young boy from the age of 18 to 30.

In the film, Bipasha plays an aspiring actress who travels to Mumbai from Ranchi to fulfil her dreams but ends up working with Shiamak Davar’s dance troupe.

“The character in the film is just like me. Radhika works and keeps her relationship going simultaneously. The role is very contemporary. She is an effortless dresser. She wears shorts and vests and uses all kinds of funky bags and accessories.”

The dusky beauty says she enjoyed shooting for the film.

“I was completely pampered on the sets and have finally made two great friends in Ranbir and Siddharth. I have not spent enough time with the girls though.”

“Bachna Ae Haseeno” has been extensively shot abroad at locations like Venice, Switzerland, Sydney and 15 towns of Italy.

Bipasha enjoyed her Italy stint the most.

She said: “I got a lot of compliments in Italy for the clothes I was wearing. Italian men only know how to romance. They are impeccably dressed with styled hair and they only want to marry you.”

Her forthcoming movies include Bengali film “Shob Charitro Kalponik” Sanjay Gupta’s “Pankh” and Jeh Surti’s “Freeze”. All are schedule to hit the screens this year.

Bipasha won a Best Female Debut Award for Ajnabee and has also appeared in a raft of other credible films such as Raaz, the sexy Jism, Barsaat, No Entry, Corporate, Dhoom 2, Dhan Dhana Dhan Goal, Race and had a simply stunning item number in Omkara.

She says she enjoyed playing her role in Bachna Ae Haseeno despite being in some pain whilst filming the dance number because of a cartilage tear in her right knee. “I had a fabulous time playing the character of the Shiamak Davar dancer Radhika in Bachna Ae Haseeno,” she says.

Despite glowing reviews for her role in Corporate, Bipasha has not really picked up as many meaty roles since then. She considers this may be a combination of not specifically belonging to one of the Bollywood ‘camps’ and the industry being male-orientated. As she puts it herself - “I think there are many reasons why I am not offered good films. Firstly, I don’t belong to any particular camp like some other actresses. Then, it’s a well known fact that I have a boyfriend who I do not hide in my closet. Also, all said and done, we should not forget the fact that it is a hero oriented film industry and I cannot ask for more than what I being offered.”

However, Bipasha does have a couple of good roles lined up, including Freeze with Neil Nitin Mukesh and Pankh.

There are no plans for Bipasha and John Abraham to tie the knot – they are enjoying life as they are. “What would you do in life if you are busy 24/7 with only your work and have no one to share your life?” she asks, “However, in case you want to know when I am planning to plunge into marriage with John, let me confess that as of now there are no marriage plans for us though we do not hide the fact that we are seeing each other and we are in love. What I like the best about John and myself is that neither of us carry the baggage of being stars. We are like-minded soul mates who do not like to hide behind sunglasses.”

Basu made her debut film in Abbas Mustan’s Ajnabee, with Akshay Kumar, Bobby Deol and Kareena Kapoor. She played a married woman who goes all out to woo her husband’s married friend, and eventually won the Filmfare Best Female Debut Award for her performance.Besides acting, Bips, as her friends call her, did the famous video “Tu” for Sonu Nigam’s album, Kismat and made a guest appearance in Jay Sean’s music video Stolen. In 2006, she won popular acclaim for her Item number Beedi in the song Omkara.

Basu is currently dating actor John Abraham, They have been dating since late 2002. She previously dated fellow Bollywood actors Milind Soman and Dino Morea.

Even though Basu is a practicing Hindu and Abraham is a Christian, both families have accepted the couple. Basu has stated in an interview that though she was raised a Hindu, she believes that all religious groups deserve respect.

Basu claims that she was harassed by organizers of the controversial 2006 India Day Parade in Edison, New Jersey. Organizers are now saying that they will sue Bipasha for breach of contract for not participating in the event and alleging harassment.